


Code Quack

by Wearysea



Series: Deceit’s Garden Headcanons [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Author Is Sleep Deprived, Couch Cuddles, Duck puns, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Episode: ACCEPTING ANXIETY Part 2/2: Can Anxiety Be Good?, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:20:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21733648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wearysea/pseuds/Wearysea
Summary: Once Virgil’s “Ducking Out” situation is sorted out, Patton comes up with a pun-tastic way of communicating and pre-emptively preventing anything like that from happening again.
Relationships: Morality | Patton Sanders/Deceit Sanders
Series: Deceit’s Garden Headcanons [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1551871
Comments: 31
Kudos: 169





	Code Quack

To say that Patton was shaken from his experience in Virgil’s room was an understatement, and he wasn’t talking about ‘the Great Spider Threat of 2017’ either. The idea that one of the sides could just… duck out, feel that it was the correct decision to duck out… it brought tears to his eyes.

They’d all worked together to make Virgil feel better and thankfully succeeded! However, Patton was still stuck on the fact that his dark, strange son felt unwanted in the first place, felt like he shouldn’t be around. What if that happened again? Patton couldn’t let it happen again. To any of them.

There needed to be a system to nip any feelings like this in the bud, well before a side reaches their breaking point like Virgil did. Patton, being Thomas’ morality, took it upon himself to make one. He knew just what to base it off of too.

Quack Quack.

Thomas had come across this meme on Instagram some weeks ago, and he’d had a good giggle about it. This is the meme that spawned “Code Quack” in Patton’s head.

It was a handy, punny scale that could be used to easily communicate feelings when anyone was feeling less than stellar, the tricky part was getting the other sides to use it.

Despite the simultaneous groaning from the three, they actually agreed on the premise.

Worryingly, Roman used it most often. He was unfortunately very critical of himself, his ideas, and he needed more propping up than he cared to admit. That was okay, Patton was more than willing to provide. Virgil was alright, most of the time, but he still had fears, naturally, that he wasn’t as part of the group as he wanted to be. Patton could help with that too.

Logan, unsurprisingly, was the most resistant to using the rubberduck scale. His desire to be seen as serious and intelligent prevented him from talking about his feelings, particularly in duck form… but Logan couldn’t hide it forever.

He’d only used it once, so far, but it had been the highest rating yet, at 8. He’d come to Patton, a closed off expression on his face while he said the number almost too quiet for Patton to here.

Patton had immediately known what Logan had meant and they got about 5 seconds into the hug before Logan began to cry. The breathless sobs broke Patton’s heart and he was so glad Logan had come to him now. The thought of him breaking down on his own was… awful.

They stayed like that for a long time after Logan had let it all out. 

Patton wished so badly that he’d gone and talked to the ‘Dark Sides’ about all of this too, because the kiddos certainly weren’t alright.

It was Deceit that tentatively started that conversation. Patton’s ashamed to admit that he was suspicious at first but decided it was best to give him the benefit of the doubt here, since he seemed… sad. Falling back on the rubberduck scale he asked, “On a scale of 1 to 9, how quack are ya?” not really expecting him to actually use it… but when Deceit said “Honk.” as he sunk out, Patton’s heart froze for a second.

Roman had been joking when he’d suggested using ‘honk’ for 10, for when they’d absolutely been pushed over the limit, and Patton hadn’t ever expected that Deceit was listening in.

Deceit always had subverted expectations, though, in every regard. Patton hadn’t hesitated to act now that ‘honk’ had been used. ‘Code Quack’ had been triggered and now they all had a feathery emergency on their hands.

It was natural that the other sides would be dubious of Deceit’s intentions but Patton was going to take this scale seriously if it killed him, so he didn’t tell them. Much better to show up and it turning out he’d been messing with him than not showing up and Deceit being desperately in need of support.

So Patton went. Carefully not imagining Virgil hissing at Deceit’s presence.

The door was unlocked and on his version of Thomas’ couch was Deceit, looking pretty worse for wear. He’d been crying, curled up on his side in a foetal position and watching the office on T.V.

_“Depression? Isn’t that just a fancy word for feeling ‘bummed out’?”_

_“Dwight, you ignorant slut.”_

“Hey.”

Deceit barely reacts to realising Patton is visiting beyond his one visible eye flickering up to look at him. He did feel confused though, he genuinely didn’t think Patton would follow him.

“…bye.”

Patton smiled, he wasn’t being told to leave and he took that as a sign that it was okay for him to stay. Patton sits down next to Deceit, his head resting next to Patton’s thigh and Patton shifts his attention back to the T.V. while absentmindedly running his fingers through Deceit’s curly hair, usually hidden by his bowler hat.

Deceit says nothing about this, although he seems content to let Patton do whatever he wants to do.

They watch the rest of this episode, and the next, and the next.

They stay like that for a long time, quietly comforting and being comforted until Deceit felt okay enough to sit up again. “Feeling better?”

“Not even a little bit.”

Patton smiles softly, says “Okay” then pulls Deceit into one of his own special Patton-ted hugs.

Deceit snorts and tells him his sense of humour isn’t terrible. Patton purposely takes this comment at face value.

Patton pulls back a little so he can see Deceit’s face, still blotchy from the crying but attempting a smile and oh, if that doesn’t just punch Patton in the gut.

… Patton never really gotten this close to Deceit before.

He didn’t realise Deceit bit his lips, they were puffy and covered in tooth marks… he wanted to kiss them.

He shouldn’t. It was a bad idea, horrible idea, truly. What would everyone say? What would Thomas say?

But this wasn’t a video. Thomas wasn’t here, didn’t even consciously know about Deceit yet, so they could let a lot of things slide right now.

Deceit smiles shyly, knowingly, and Patton remembers with a flush the effects Deceit’s room has.

Honesty.

So… there was really nothing holding him back from just leaning in and…

Oh, that feels just as nice as he imagined it would be.

**Author's Note:**

> I made this Moceit because I can.  
> (Also, if the link doesn’t work, type “rubberduck scale” into Instagram, you’ll find it.)


End file.
